giant lacewing

plural giant lacewings

1. Any insect of the family Polystoechotidae.

   Judging by the material in Canadian insect collections, the giant lacewing, Polystoechotes punctatus, was a common insect in Ontario 50 years ago.

   1995, Toronto Entomologists' Association, Ontario Insects, volumes 1-4, page 20

   2 more examples

   The punctured giant lacewing, Polystoechotes punctatus (Fabricius), the largest lacewing (greater than 35 mm) to inhabit the Great Lakes region, is quite rare.

   1996, Gary A. Dunn, Insects of the Great Lakes Region, page 154

   The giant lacewings, family Polystoechotidae, comprise three or four extant and highly disjunct species restricted to the New World: Polystoechotes in Chile and North America (Figure 9.14), Platystoechotes in California, and Fontecilla in Chile (Carpenter, 1940; Oswald, 1998a).

   2005, David Grimaldi, Evolution of the Insects, page 349

   Synonyms: polystoechotid